Germany will pay freelance musicians up to 5,000 Euros

Germany will pay freelance musicians up to 5,000 Euros

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norman lebrecht

November 05, 2020

The federal minister of culture Monika Grütters has told the German press association: ‘We have succeeded in creating a separate series for the self-employed, as the largest target group from the creative industries.’

She added: ‘It is a very important signal that the self-employed are now receiving their own funding up to a maximum of 5,000 euros. It is a recognition of their way of life and work.’

 

Comments

  • Dander says:

    5000 Euro would not go very far, I wonder how many fraudulent claims they have. Can buskers get a sub for example.

    • Andy says:

      Yes I think a busker being freelance could probably get the 5000 Euro sub, just need a mail box address.
      Any Tom, Dick and Harry would apply if similar set up in UK. Must check the website.

      • Fill Yer Boots says:

        Dander, the sub server has gone arse over tit with so many folk scrambling for a share of the pie, yes there could well be a load of folk trying it on, they have loads of cov-19 sub schemes, you could do them all from a mail box address in Munich, Berlin, Leipzig, Hannover etc.

        I think many folk will be down the auld Food Bank this Christmas. The booze is shiftin off the shelves in Tesco, LIDL and ALDI. A fella I saw had a year’s supply of bog roll in his trolley the other day, like Mount Everest, I hope you manage to fill yer boots.

    • BruceB says:

      Maybe it wouldn’t go “very” far; but it beats the hell out of nothing.

  • Rogerio says:

    IMHO, this proves that Germany could easily contribute with an additional 1% of its GDP to NATO. And you know what that means: German Bundes-Aircraft Carriers … Ok, wait… maybe they should just keep giving the money to musicians. Never mind.

    • Tamino says:

      Military comes and goes. Artistic achievements stay.
      I don‘t see tourists visiting former battlefields. But artistic creations are of highest interest. Athens attracts visitors, Sparta does not.
      What are we fighting for? What are we living for?
      F**k NATO, not so much pre 1989, but particularly these days.

      • Dander says:

        Russia and hordes from the East and ROW mate, those folk in rubber boats keep trying to cross the channel. No entry mate we are full.

      • Rogerio says:

        I understand your simple a beautiful logic Tamino! It is like the music group “Modern Talking”. Before 1987 it was Modern Talking Time. After that: “F**K” Modern Talking!

      • Geezer says:

        Specialist interest groups visit battle fields as do Detectorists. Waterloo, Somme, Ypres, Izonzo also Rorke’s Drift, Omdurman, Hitler’s bunker, Nordhausen, yes battlefields are popular.

    • Nelson & Bronte says:

      Germany because of its horrendous past prefers others to do its fighting for it!

      We in Blighty would not want to see any black crossed aircraft carriers, besides the HM’s Royal Navy does a much better job, Germany has no coastline apart from the Baltic.

      We will be sending our gunboats to stop illegal fishing in our waters post Brexit. British fish for British fish and chip shops.

      O Lord, make thy servant Elizabeth
      Our Queen to rejoice in thy strength:
      Give her her heart’s desire,
      And deny not the request of her lips;
      But prevent her with thine everlasting blessing,
      And give her a long life,
      Even for ever and ever. Amen.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4j3ZSxu2jo

  • Dander says:

    Germany will soon burn up its trade surplus at this rate, if as expected cov-19 runs on beyond next year.

    • Brettermeier says:

      “Germany will soon burn up its trade surplus at this rate, if as expected cov-19 runs on beyond next year.”

      That’s what Russian trolls tell us for years. 😀

      @NL: There’s still A LOT of ads from the “Kopp Verlag” (Nazi/tinfoil hat) on this site. I kind of hope that you don’t want that.

  • Gustavo says:

    Let’s hope there are no “musicians” who play the system.

  • Papageno says:

    Meanwhile, the National Endowment of the Arts in the USA gave $50.72 to the arts in 2019-2020.

    • NYMike says:

      NEA budget: $162,250,000 USD (2020) – just a bit more than $50.72, no?

      • As that number shows, the NEA spends about 50 cents per capita on the arts. When the sums paid by states and localities are included the amount comes to about $3.60 per capita. Private funding for the arts comes to about $26. Public and private funding combined come to about $30 per capita.

        By comparison Austria spends $324 per capita, Denmark $374, Norway $667, Germany $146, Italy $147, and Netherlands $333. The average for these countries is $331 – 11 times higher than American spending, both public and private. (These numbers are a bit out of date; the sums are higher now.)

        This lack of funding for the arts is everywhere apparent in American society. The country, for example, only has 2 cities in the top 100 for opera performances per year. It ranks 39th for opera performances per capita, behind every European country except Portugal. During my career, the orchestras in San Diego, Miami, Kansas City, Albuquerque, Syracuse, Tulsa, San Antonio, New Orleans, Denver, San Jose, Colorado Springs, Honolulu, Miami, and Philadelphia declared bankruptcy. Many more are in continual financial trouble.

  • Mr. Knowitall says:

    It’s not just musicians, is it? As far as I can tell all freelance culture works are elgible. Actors, painters, composers, potters, whatever. Regarding Dander’s comment above, 1. 5000 euros goes much further than zero euros 2. buskers would qualify if they are members of the social support organization KSK (to be so they must at one time have engaged in non-busking performances and perhaps still do) 3. who knows how much fraud will take place; what’s the point of asking now?

    • V.Lind says:

      There’s a level of fraud in all claim sectors. we have seen it in Canada, so I very much doubt it is absent in Britain or Europe or the US.

  • Bored Muso says:

    it’s more than our hapless uncaring shambolic government are paying us deserving UK freelance musos,
    many of whom are getting out of the business and
    re -training in non music careers…

  • MezzoLover says:

    Monika Grütters has demonstrated, yet again, what leadership in protecting/promoting culture really means.

    – Since she became Germany’s culture minister in 2013, federal spending on culture has increased by 60%.

    – She led the German government’s rescue and recovery program which provided €50 billion ($54 billion) in backing specifically to small businesses and freelancers, including those from the cultural, creative, and media sectors whose livelihoods were threatened by COVID-19.

    https://news.artnet.com/art-world/german-bailout-50-billion-1815396

    – In September she hosted a working meeting in Berlin for her EU counterparts to discuss ways to “keep culture alive in Europe” in the face of the challenges posed by the pandemic for the entire cultural sector across EU.

    – A few days before reaffirming financial support for freelance artists during the current coronavirus shutdown, she spoke out again for the cultural sector, stating: “It’s about the livelihoods of more than 1.5 million people who contribute more than 100 billion euros to the gross domestic product and who often work as self-employed people.”

    https://www.barrons.com/news/coronavirus-shutdown-a-slap-for-german-cultural-world-01604230504

    And let’s not forget Angela Merkel, without whose support none of these would have been possible.

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